A Holiday Reading List from Ph.D. Comics

Maggie Koerth 10:20 am Tue Dec 15, 2009

I do not have a Ph.D. (Nay, even a Master's. All I got is one B.A. and one B.S. Guess which is journalism, and which is anthropology. Hint: Irony and poop jokes are involved.) But I love Ph.D. Comics. Currently, awesome artist/Ph.D.-holder Jorge Cham is offering a peer-reviewed, Christmas-themed reading list, for your vacation enjoyment. Suggested papers include:

Christmas Disease: A condition previously mistaken for haemophilia. British Medical Journal, December 27, 1952
Red Crabs in the Rainforest, Christmas Island: Biotic Resistance to Invasion by an Exotic Snail. Nordic Society Oikos, 1991
More Than a Labor of Love: Gender Roles and Christmas Gift Shopping. Journal of Consumer Research, 1990

Ph.D. Comics: Christmas Papers

Newly discovered fish species looks just like Big Bird's best friend, Mr. Snuffleupagus

It's surely no surprise that my favorite Sesame Street character is Aloysius Snuffleupagus, a.k.a. Mr. Snuffleupagus, a.k.a. Snuffy. I mean, it's not a secret that I'm a sucker for an… READ THE REST
Pigeons may navigate using magnetic cells in their liver

A study in the journal Science argues that homing pigeons may read Earth's magnetic field using iron-rich cells in their livers, rather than their beaks or eyes. Researchers wiped out… READ THE REST
Scientists sterilized soil. It kept breathing for six years.

Quanta's "The Dirt That Refused To Die" follows a French lab that sterilized soil with gamma radiation, sealed it in jars, and watched it keep breathing — taking in oxygen… READ THE REST
If you're paying a la carte for AI models, this $60 lifetime pass gets you ChatGPT, Claude & more

Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: ChatPlayground AI lets you compare GPT, Claude, Gemini, and more side-by-side in one tab—and lifetime access is… READ THE REST
Imagine never seeing a website hosting renewal email again after paying $149.99 once

Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: Most web hosts treat your website like a subscription. PawnHoster's King Plan would rather take your money once… READ THE REST
This HP EliteBook delivers business-class performance for $400

Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: This HP EliteBook comes with a range of professional features you can depend on and software… READ THE REST